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There are a lot of different reasons to use a VPN on your Android smartphone. Whether it’s to hide your location so you can browse privately or to secure your browsing while connected to public Wi-Fi hotspots.
VPN apps are a dime a dozen on Android. Which means you have no shortage of choices when trying to select an app that will work for your own personal needs. Many options are free, while some will require a monthly subscription for access.
NordVPN is an example of a VPN app for an Android smartphone that will allow users to hide their real IP addresses for a monthly fee. Tunnel Bear, ExpressVPN, and Thunder VPN are other examples.
Aside from hiding your IP though, VPNs offer a ton of other features and there are other great reasons to use them on your Android smartphone. Here are the top five reasons to use a VPN on your Android smartphone.
The top reasons to use a VPN on your Android smartphone
To hide your real IP address
Hiding your real IP address is something that most people probably don’t think about when browsing the web. But it should be something that you consider especially these days.
Because hiding your IP allows you to stay anonymous and browse the web privately. Maybe you need to hide your IP address for safety reasons. Or perhaps you just want your IP to look as if you’re browsing in another country.
In either case, an app like NordVPN can help in this sense. And you can connect to servers from 58 different countries.
With that many different countries to connect to, you can ensure that your IP is always properly hidden and private, while also being connected to a different server every time.
To browse the Play Store from other countries
This is a really good reason to use a VPN, because there are always apps and games that are only available in certain countries. This is called a region lock. But you can get around region locks with a VPN.
And the results are fantastic once you’re able to get the apps and games you’ve been wanting.
There is one caveat to this though. You have to set up a Google account from the country whose Play Store you’re trying to browse. For example, if you’re trying to browse the Japanese Play Store, then you need to set up a Japanese Google account.
If you’re trying to browse the Singapore Play Store, then you’ll need to set up a Google account for Singapore. Why do this? Exactly the reason as stated above. To get access to games and apps that are only available in Singapore and other regions. For example, sometimes games will soft launch in Singapore.
And if you’re a US user who wants to play a specific game, but also need that game to be in English, then the Singapore Play Store is where to look because they’ll usually launch games in English for that region.
This is where a VPN comes in as Singapore is one of the country servers that can be found in many VPN apps.
Connecting to country specific servers for games
You might have a friend that lives in another country and you want to play games with them on the same server that they’re connected to. This is where a VPN comes in handy once again.
If the server you need to connect to requires you to be in a specific country, all you’d need to do is use a VPN app on your Android smartphone and then you’re ready to go. Just find the server for the country you need and then you’re set.
Watch region-locked content on Netflix or other streaming services
This is another big reason to use a VPN, and really one of the best reasons if you’re a TV and movie buff. Netflix has a ton of really awesome content but it’s not always available in all regions. For example, Netflix has access to a collection of Studio Ghibli films. But only for certain countries.
The US is not one of those countries because of HBO Max, the only service in the US where you can stream this content properly. An easy way around this though if you already have a Netflix account and don’t want to pay for HBO Max, is just to use a VPN.
Connect to the country where Netflix offers that content, and you should then be able to see what you’re searching for. Not to mention you save money by not having to sign up for yet another streaming service.
Protecting your sensitive data
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, a top reason to use a VPN on your Android smartphone is because it helps you protect your sensitive data. Most people browse the web on their phones these days. Doing everything from banking to shopping.
If you fall into this category, there’s no reason not to use a VPN and protect your sensitive data. Such as credit and debit card numbers, social security numbers, your mailing address and more.
Without a VPN all of that is traveling through the internet unprotected and while there may not be anyone trying to get a hold of that type of information from the website you visit, why take the risk?
A VPN makes it possible to encrypt that data so it’s not easily accessible. Ensuring it stays in the hands of the one person it should stay with, you, as well as the sites where you may be entering that information in, should it be required.
Of course there are other reasons to use a VPN on your device, but these are five of the top reasons why you might want to use one.